JAY PARIS: In SD, nobody's better than Sockers

DEL MAR ---- A San Diego pro team winning a football
championship? Steady my beating heart.

I'm sorry ---- this is futbol.

The San Diego Sockers are heading to the Professional Arena
Soccer League playoffs, and what's a Sockers postseason without a
title? While the Chargers continue to hit rough patches en route to
a Vince Lombardi Trophy and the Padres' attempt to get premium
performance by spending minimal dollars, the Sockers are two games
shy of another crown.

"The tradition we have is winning,'' the Sockers' Paul Wright
said. "We respect the regular season, but we know in the back of
our minds that the San Diego Sockers are about winning
championships. This is all for naught if we don't get the job done
at the end."

The Sockers once hogged San Diego's sports spotlight. They
filled the San Diego Sports Arena with an exciting brand of soccer
that produced a string of success no local team could match.

They won the 1982 and '84 North America Soccer League titles,
then eight more championships from 1983-92 in the Major Indoor
Soccer League.

Among the players back then was the shifty Wright, who might be
40 but will still challenge anyone to a foot race.

"We use to draw 12,000 to 15,000 people, and it was a big
event,'' Wright said.

"But those days are gone."

The winning continues, albeit in a smaller venue ---- the Del
Mar Arena.

The trappings, though, of the Sockers' impressive history are on
display.

Former Sockers legend Juli Veee is a regular spectator, as are
other stalwarts from kicks long ago.

And like the good old days, the Seventh Man Section is teeming
with full-throated rowdies known for their verbal versatility.

"Those guys, they crack me up," said Wright, a Solana Beach
resident. "They come up with some real original stuff and
definitely get under the skins of other players. They get them
distracted, and that is good for us."

The Sockers, back after a four-year hiatus, swept through the
PASL's Western Division with a 13-3 record this season. That
included an undefeated stretch of eight games at the Del Mar Arena,
a cozy and first-rate venue.

"It is so nice,'' Wright said. "When other teams come to play us
they are a little intimidated when they look at what we got here.
We love it."

Just like Wright embraces setting up Kraig Chiles.

Wright and Chiles, a former Poway High and San Diego State star,
have led the Sockers' offense. Chiles, 25, is its top scorer, and
the majority of his goals are the result of Wright's spot-on
passing.

It was Chiles' persistent pestering that first led him to
Wright. In the early 1990s, Chiles was always badgering his mother
to fire up the family van and head for a Sockers game ---- where
Wright was among his favorites.

Now Chiles drives the Sockers ---- with Wright's help.

"It's an honor playing with Paul,'' Chiles said. "I used to
watch him play when he was younger ---- he was an exciting, flashy
player and everyone knew his name."

Cheers, is what the Wright-Chiles connection has brought.

"We have played well together,'' said Chiles, who's also in the
property management business. "We are on the same page out there on
the field."

Wright, who operates a North County sports training facility,
has served as Chiles' passer and mentor.

"From Day 1 when I met him, I saw what he could do and realized
he could help me," Wright said. "I kind of took him under my wing
and helped him understand the game and how to get into different
spots.

"I just kept feeding him the ball, and he is a fantastic
finisher. I got the easy job ---- the hard part is putting it in
the net."

What's easy for Wright, Chiles and others associated with the
Sockers is wrapping their arms around the past.

"To tell you the truth this is not just for ourselves, because
the Sockers have a legacy that dates back 20, 30 years," Chiles
said. "If we mess up, we are killing the whole legacy. We are
playing for our fans, we are playing for former players and that
legacy they left behind."

Ahead is Friday's PASL semifinal at Del Mar Arena. A victory
would put the Sockers in Saturday's championship game.

"This would be the 11th championship, and I don't think too many
teams will come close to that in any sport," Wright said.